| Actual | Previous | |
|---|---|---|
| Level | 64,789 | 90,309 |
Highlights
The Challenger report on job cut intentions is down 28.3 percent to 64,789 in April after rising to 90,309 in March, and is down 3.3 percent from 66,995 in April 2023. Job cut intentions are running at a similar pace as last year. For the first four months of 2024, intentions totaled 322,043, while for 2023, the four-month total was 337,411.
Job cut announcements were broad-based in April. The largest number of planned job cuts was 14,373 in automotive, or 22.2 percent of the total, and was almost entirely due to Telsa's plan to cut 14,000 jobs in its global workforce. The next highest sector was education at 8,092, or 12.5 percent of the total. In some instances, the elimination of jobs in education may be due to lack of people to fill positions.
The most frequently cited reason for job cuts in April was market/economic conditions at 26,866, or 39.6 percent of the total. This is consistent with a labor market that is rebalancing and responding to economic conditions.
Hiring intentions were down 53.5 percent to 9,802 in April after rising to 21,102 in March, and were down 57.9 percent from 23,310 a year ago. The industry with the largest number of hiring intentions in April was real estate at 1,500, or 15.3 percent of the total. Next was entertainment/leisure at 1,275, or 13.0 percent of the total. No one sector was particularly strong in April, but the report suggests that a pickup in home buying/selling is anticipated as more supply comes on to the market, and that consumers are expected to be more inclined to go out during the warmer months.
Job cut announcements were broad-based in April. The largest number of planned job cuts was 14,373 in automotive, or 22.2 percent of the total, and was almost entirely due to Telsa's plan to cut 14,000 jobs in its global workforce. The next highest sector was education at 8,092, or 12.5 percent of the total. In some instances, the elimination of jobs in education may be due to lack of people to fill positions.
The most frequently cited reason for job cuts in April was market/economic conditions at 26,866, or 39.6 percent of the total. This is consistent with a labor market that is rebalancing and responding to economic conditions.
Hiring intentions were down 53.5 percent to 9,802 in April after rising to 21,102 in March, and were down 57.9 percent from 23,310 a year ago. The industry with the largest number of hiring intentions in April was real estate at 1,500, or 15.3 percent of the total. Next was entertainment/leisure at 1,275, or 13.0 percent of the total. No one sector was particularly strong in April, but the report suggests that a pickup in home buying/selling is anticipated as more supply comes on to the market, and that consumers are expected to be more inclined to go out during the warmer months.
Definition
This monthly report counts and categorizes announcements of corporate layoffs based on mass layoff data from state departments of labor. The job-cut report must be analyzed with caution. It doesn't distinguish between layoffs scheduled for the short-term or the long term, or whether job cuts are handled through attrition or actual layoffs. Also, the job-cut report does not include jobs eliminated in small batches over a longer time period. Unlike most economic data, this series is not adjusted for seasonal variation.
Description
The job-cut report is basically a rehash of the weekly jobless claims report but provides additional insight into where layoffs are occurring. There is industry and geographic (states) detail that is not available with weekly jobless claims.
